Tonight, is my first official competitive tennis match in over a decade. *Deep breath and exhale slowly* Yes, I am excited. Yes, I am nervous. Yes, I am scared that we will be beaten into pulp. We have been getting our backsides handed to us in nearly every match. We are playing in a league up, so victories are hard to come by, it seems.
It is a developmental season, preparing for March's competitive season. However, for me, I don't like to lose. I can lose with a smile, but I don't like to lose. Mostly, I don't like to lose to myself. To commit unforced errors and lose a match because you handed them over half their points...not to my liking.
However, not that I am expecting to lose, in fact, I am expecting to win! My partner, Shashi, is really great to play with. We have only played a couple times together, and both of us are singles players. This has pros and cons to both sides. One of our biggest challenges has been communication. When you play singles, you play the whole court. In doubles you share the court, and when you decide to switch sides, you need to let each other know. Also, in singles you can go after everything yourself, and in doubles your partner will be there to back you up. Communication is so important, and yet, we are just now learning to talk to each other. She is super nice, and is really down to earth.
The ladies we played with last night were a little on the scary side, but they were cool. They are of the more vintage variety, but can really put the ball where it needs to be. I hope to be as good as they are soon, and just as good when I am their age, if not better! We lost both sets, but it was close most of the way. We made a good comeback and they won in the tie-break the first set 6-7(5), and we lost the second set 4-6.
I used to have a strong backhand, now...it's not so strong. I for sure need to work on my backhand side. They tore me up on it last night. If I had even a decent backhand, we probably would have won. But, they saw the weakness and exploited it. I even got aced. I hate that! I at least want to touch it with my racquet. But she got me clean away! I had to regain composure mentally after that. I smiled on the outside, but was ready to spit on the inside. Just at myself I was upset. At least get a tip! Just make contact with the ball somehow! Move my feet! So, I double faulted after they won the game on the ace. I don't double fault too often, but one double fault is one too many as far as I am concerned!
It was a lot of fun. Even Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic have to learn from each game or practice. I learned a ton, and relearned a ton. I am really looking forward to playing tonight! =)
ej
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